We saved Eastern Market all by ourselves!

Wow, Wowie and Wowsers. What a great turn out tonight. The place was pizz-acked with good friends, new and old. Wall to wall. Not that we've never been wall to wall before, but let's just say, it's been a month or two before it was REALLY packed. Very nice. Very nice indeed.


We instigated Operation Blog tonight with Rebecca taking pics of the winning teams (note to self: question next week on Operation Dumbo Drop) which seemed to go well. We also were raising money for Eastern Market Rescue and I have to say, the people there tonight GOT it. I mean, I'd like to think they were there for Quizzo, but they were mostly there for a burned out shell of a market and that meant so much more to me. At last count we had raised over 20 million dollars. Or maybe just twenty. I don't remember. Let's say somwhere in between right now. Full details to follow.

There were four or five teams made up of former regulars who made the trek back to the Pour House and it was really fun to see them back. Jose, Akiva, Andy, Cherie, Olivia, Ashley, Rob, Tom, Josh (I feel like the Romper Room woman with her magic mirror; or for you kids, Prince with his magic mask...): folks we haven't seen in weeks to months. Great to have you all back. But of course the regulars who never left, y'all's the shit. And Emily even brought the girls out (not pictured ... yet) and they helped her team win ... twice! Way to go!

So let's recap how the kids did tonight (best possible score, as always, is 40-ish):

GAME 1 Who doesn't love a threeway? Needed two tiebreakers to break it!

Bill Clinton's Anti-AIDS Strategy 32 (1st)


45 Days in Paris 32 (2nd)



Subpoena Colada 32 (Third)


And their challengers...
Queen Went to the Derby and Became my Old Kentucky Ho 31
One Night in Paris II: Big Momma's Turn 31
Clavins 30
Fort Dix Terrorists: Shooting Blanks 29
Her Majesty's Arsonists 27
LA's Gonorrhea Epidemic Abated for 45 Days 27
Jim and Me 25
Katy's Last Night at Quizzo 24 (Bye Katy!)
We Didn't Start the Fire 20
The Team at the Bar 19
Paris Storms the Bastille 18
Saving the Market One Beer at a Time 16

GAME 2
(Theme Name: What's the worst thing that could be done with the Eastern Market site?)

George W. Bush Commemorative Libary 35


Capitol Disney 33 (Our other double winners of the night)


Clavins 32 (Tiebreaker winners)


And the runners-up...
Rosie O'Donnell Apparel Museum 32
House the Georgetown Library 31
Basra Visitor's Center 29
Marion Barry's Snow Machine, LLC 28
Monorail? Monorail! 28
Build New National's Stadium 28
andguns Whole Sale 28
Build a Starbucks 26
Strangle It, Rape It, Murder It and Throw It in the Ocean 26
Dubya Institute for Foreign Affairs 12

Burning Down the House

One week ago a DC landmark and the place where I buy food for my family, Eastern Market, burned down. Or up, more accurately. Most of it is still there, a charred hull of what was a truly charming bit of an old-world shopping experience. It's a large reason why people move to this neighborhood. Within the cavernous, not-up-to-fire-code, brick and mortar building were butchers, produce sellers, a florist, the stinky cheese man, a bakery, a fish mongery... it was delightful. The place was packed on weekends with people not from my neighborhood which kind of sucked, but on weekdays, after work I could head down there just before they closed and pick up enough fresh ingredients to make a dinner that you were proud of. The place was 487 years old (what an Amazing Funfact!) and a nice reminder of what life was like before supermarkets. Not that supermarkets are all bad; air conditioning and refrigeration have their admirable qualities. But you know what I mean. The merchants didn't know my name, but they knew me. They smiled and chatted with you and if you had a kid with you, they give you a banana. I swear it's true. Real bananas.

Thanks to Eastern Market, our house had Mystery Fish Thursday. You see, not having been raised eating seafood (mom never trusted the freshness of California fish, go figure) I decided we needed to try eating more. Being novices in the ways of fins and gillage, I turned to the fish monger man at EM. On Thursdays I'd walk in just before he closed and ask "What's good?" Whatever he recommended, I bought; took it home and made a meal of it. I tried tilapia, flounder, scrod, salmon, snapper, rockfish, tuna: whatever the little man suggested. (I say little because he was only 27 inches tall. Oddest thing you ever saw.) But I digress... He never steered me wrong, that tiny man, and it was all pretty darn tasty. The secret is lemon. Lemons bought at Eastern Market. You see where I'm going?

Anyway, tomorrow night the Pour House is donating a portion of its proceeds to Eastern Market Rescue to help out the merchants who lost their livelihoods in the fire. Ridiculously, I mentioned it to Fritz over at der Post who told everyone on Going Out Gurus that I've got a fire-themed evening. Uh, yeah, right... Um, guess I'd better get cracking on that one. Oh well, it'll be worth staying up late crafting brilliant questions to raise a little dough for a worthy cause. Hope to see you there (he said to no one in particular).

Cheers!